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Tuesday, July 24, 2012

We Discover The Olympic Spirit

July
24 – Byfield to Sarina via 1956

We
packed up before the Byfield General Store opened. I had a chat to
some contractors who were clearing bush regrowth around the power
lines, and who had left a couple of their trucks parked at the store
overnight.

I'd
been using their vehicles as a drying rack for my dew sodden tent,
which gave me an opening for starting a conversation.

Not
that it's been difficult to strike up a conversation with total
strangers. The bikes are always a point of interest, and when people
find out what we are doing, they are full of stories, advice, route
suggestions and well wishes. We've even had one couple from South Australia invite us to stay with them on our way through the south!

The
local school was directly opposite the store, and as soon as the
store opened, there was a steady stream of locals stopping by after dropping off their kids. The store is clearly a community meeting place and well patronised.

We
decided to skip the hot breakfast and instead – having thanked our
hosts for their hospitality- we once again hit the road.

The
plan for today was to head towards Mackay, and avoid as much of the
main road by taking a section of the old Bruce Highway that loops
inland from Marlborough to Sarina (just south of Mackay).

This
proved to be a smart move. The road was great. No caravans, no cops,
no trucks, no road works and we only saw about another dozen vehicles
on the whole stretch. This section of the old Bruce Highway, crosses
back over the coastal range with a short sharp twisty section to some
interesting country, where the road runs south to north with great
open views out to the west. At the northern section the road once
again crosses the coastal range to meet the current Bruce Highway at
Sarina. Again some great riding through very pretty countryside. As
an added bonus, when we pulled over for lunch, we discovered that the
roadside rest spot we had selected was the “Croydon Commemorative
Park for the 1956 Olympic Torch Relay.” In the middle of nowhere we
stumble on this bizarre artifact from the past. Obviously looked
after, but judging by the lack of traffic, seldom visited. With the
new highway kilometers away to the east, it had been bypassed by
history.

The
plan had been to find somewhere we could have a hot shower and do
some laundry. However, we arrive at the Sarina Tourist Information
Centre to discover that there is a huge mining industry expo
happening up the road in Mackay, and that accommodation was going to
be hard to find locally.

Fortunately
Rita and Heather – the two obliging old ladies manning (personing? womening?) the Tourist
Bureau - sprang into action, and after a couple of phone calls they'd
found us the last remaining campsite in a caravan park just round the
corner.

Hot
shower, a quick laundry run, then off to the local pub for grub and
beer.

Last time I drove through Sarina was in January 1965 (if I remember correctly). It was late at night and we did a hairy twisting drive into Mackay watching out for animals on the road and trying to keep my Dad awake. He was so tired by the end we had to spend a day in Mackay - his first attack of Meniere's. The lesson? Stop Revive Survive! It has had a lasting impression on my driving practice and I wasn't quite a teen then.